


Gomen, Tsukki

by honeyspit



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Angst, Anxiety Disorder, BoyxBoy, Fluff, M/M, Sensory Processing Disorder, Slow Burn, Smut, Tsukishima Kei is Bad at Feelings, Yamaguchi Tadashi's Freckles, delinquent tsukishima, haikyuu!! - Freeform, mlm, soft
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-23
Updated: 2020-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:47:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,219
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26610049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honeyspit/pseuds/honeyspit
Summary: Yamaguchi Tadashi reunites with his delinquent childhood friend, Tsukishima Kei, in his first year of high school.i’m doing some editing on this story so :/
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio, Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Comments: 2
Kudos: 73





	1. Chapter 1

The sun lowered below the clouds, giving way to the moon and freezing air that January nights offered. Tsukishima blew out a puff of smoke and discarded the cigarette butt to the ground.

"Tsukishimaaa!" Yelled a distant voice from behind. Tsukki didn't bother to turn around, knowing it was his friend Okuda. He ran to Tsukishima and grabbed onto his shoulder, which Tsukki almost instantaneously shoved off. 

"You're excited for your first year at Karasuno, huh Tsukki?" Okuda teased, "I bet you'll get suspended before I do!"

Tsukishima scoffed. "Not a chance, stupid. You'll be kicked out the first week. And I told you never to call me that." Tsukki puncuated his last remark with a hard punch to his friend's arm. Okuda was a delinquent, frequently supplying Tsukishima with cigarettes, alcohol, and dirty magazines. Although an undeniably bad kid, Okuda had an air to him that just made him . . . likable. Something Tsukishima severely lacked.

"Ow!!! You jerk!!!" Okuda whined, rubbing his arm. "I guess we'll just have to bet on it then. First one to get suspended has to pay the other 2000, no, 5000 yen!"

"Fine. I don't know how you'll come up with the money." Tsukishima was pretty confident he'd win. Okuda was always being followed by trouble, while Tsukishima usually set out for it. 

Okuda yawned. "Okaaay Tsukki, I'll see you bright and early tomorrow. Be ready to compete!" He darted away from another one of Tsukki's punches and ran towards his home. 

Tsukishima strolled back to his own house, not wanting to face the reality that he would have to go to his brother's old school.

Tsukishima had to leave his first high school. He only spent a semester there, but he had caused so much trouble they expelled him. They allowed him to complete the semester, on the condition that he did not get in trouble again. After that, he had to find somewhere else that would accept him. Luckily, Karasuno did. 

Tsukki's older brother had been a star student during his years there. He gave Tsukki a glowing recommendation when he went to speak with the principal about allowing Tsukishima to have a second chance at Karasuno. His enrolement there was conditional; he had to maintain high grades, and refrain from starting fights or getting in trouble. The first one was easy. Tsukishima always made good grades, even when he didn't try. But staying out of trouble will prove to be a little more difficult than getting an A on a calculus exam. Tsukishima couldnt help himself when it came to delinquency. He got strange enjoyment out of doing everything he wasn't supposed to.

His house came into sight and he sighed. He entered the front door as quietly as he could, wanting to slip past his prying mother. 

"Where have you been?" He heard a shrill voice from behind when he was halfway up the stairs. 

"Take off those fucking headphones when I'm speaking to you! Turn around!" Tsukki kept going up the stairs, ignoring his mother's demands. 

He reached the top of the staircase, but her next line stopped him. 

"Honestly Kei, why can't you be more like your brother?" Tsukishima looked down the staircase at her. She was wearing a dirty t-shirt, her hair was disheveled, and she had knee pads on meant for protection while scrubbing floors. Her eyes had darker bags than usual and her fingers looked red and cracked. She looked completely worn down. Tsukki looked at her for another moment, while she stared back expectantly, then went into his room.

He tossed his bag next to his desk and flopped into the bed. She was right. Why couldn't he be more like Akiteru? He never gets in trouble, has a nice girlfriend, and goes to college. Akiteru never caused problems when he was a high school student, and it seems like that's all Tsukishima does. 

He changed into pajamas and settled into bed. His mind raced. Was he actually . . . nervous? He's never felt this before. Why was he nervous? All high schools are the same. They're always filled with other students who will stare at Tsukki because of his height and make jokes about it. Filled with girls who he'll have to turn down when they confess to him. Filled with close minded people. 

Tsukki shook the thoughts out of his head and placed his glasses on the nightstand. "I'll be fine" he mumbled to himself as he slipped into sleep. 

-

Tsukishima donned the military style uniform which, surprisingly, was not too short for his lengthy arms and legs. 

"Breakfast, Kei!" His mother hollered from the kitchen. He couldn't help but feel a little guilty for the interaction last night. His tired mother had better things to deal with than Tsukki's antics. He sat with his mother at the table and chatted with her a bit. 

"Do you like the uniform? They had to custom make it!" His mother laughed. "Honestly, I don't know where your height comes from."

Tsukishima gave a small smile, feeling better that she wasn't still mad from the night before. She pushed Tsukki's lunch box to his chest, making him come out of his thoughts. 

"Go, or you'll be late!" Tsukki made his way to the front door, but a gentle hand on his shoulder stopped him. He turned to face his mother. 

"Please Tsukki, try to stay out of trouble." His mother asked softly, but her eyes were pleading. He nodded and left the house. 

The walk to school was nice. He got to listen to music and no one was around to bother him. Tsukishima preferred to be alone. He got too annoyed by mostly everyone to tolerate them for a long time. As he approached the school, he confirmed that Okuda was definitely not an exception. 

"Tsukkiiiiii!" Okuda yelled as he ran towards his tall friend. 

"Idiot! Don't call me that! Don't made a scene!" Tsukki responded angrily. 

"Come meet my friends!" Okuda ignored Tsukishima's annoyance and dragged him over to the small group of boys who were sitting on the edge of campus. They all seemed similar to Okuda; squirrelly, funny, and incredibly annoying. 

"How'd you meet Tsukishima?" One of the group members asked Okuda. He lit up. 

"Tsukishima saved me from the convenience store worker! He was going to kill me for stealing but Tsukki was there and helped! He's so cool." Okuda teased. 

"Shut up Okuda, he wasn't going to kill you." Tsukki still flinched when Okuda called him by his nickname. He never liked being called that by anyone. Tsukishima thought for a moment. Except one person . . . 

As Tsukishima was thinking, the rest of the group had made their way towards the school. 

"Bye, Tsukki!" Okuda yelled and Tsukishima jogged to get to his class on time, wanting to obey his mother. He got into the room just as the bell rang and searched for an empty seat. The teacher entered soon after him. 

"Ah, this must be our new transfer! Welcome to Karasuno, why don't you introduce yourself to all of us?" The teacher, a small woman, at probably 5'2, looked up at Tsukishima with a smile. He went to the front of the class and pulled his headphones down to rest around his neck. 

"Hello, my name is Tsukishima Kei, thank you for having me." He said monotonously and bowed slightly. He was met with a chorus of "Welcome to Karasuno!" by the entire class. He could already feel the gaze of a few girls and heard them giggle to eachother. He found a seat near in the middle of the room and settled in. He almost wished he had a friend in his classes, but the only person he knew was Okuda, who was too stupid and annoying for Tsukki to want to spend a class period with him. 

The school day went by as boring as he expected it to, save for the whispers about him. Each new classroom he entered, he would hear hushed voices talking about the rumors that he was a delinquent, and one hundred stories about why he got expelled from his first high school. His favorite made up story was that he apparently snapped in the cafeteria during lunch, and assaulted multiple people, including stealing the principal's toupee. 

Tsukki donned his headphones after a long day of so many overwhelming noises. He felt a weight lift off his shoulders as Creature by It Looks Sad began its melody in his ears. As soon as he stepped off campus he lit a cigarette. Not long after, he was once again attacked by Okuda.

He couldn't hear what Okuda was trying to tell him and didn't bother to listen, when suddenly his music stopped. He heard birds, the wind rustling in the trees, and his own footsteps, which promptly stopped. Tsukishima spun around to see Okuda standing there, Tsukki's headphones in and and a shocked look on his face. Tsukishima slowly approached him. 

"N-now Tsukki, I-I mean Tsukishima! It's okay, alright, it was an a-accident-" Tsukki took the headphones from Okuda and inspected them for any damage. When he was finished, he looked at his shorter friend. 

"What." Tsukki said. It was more of a command for Okuda to tell him why he had been bothering him than a question. 

"Wanna . . . uh, go to the comic book store? There's a new-" 

"No." With that, Tsukishima turned and continued walking home, putting his headphones back on. 

"Scary." Okuda whispered to himself before heading to the book store alone. 

When Tsukishima finally got home, he collapsed onto his bed, worn out from the school day. His eyes fluttered shut as he drifted into sleep, dreaming about his childhood.


	2. Chapter 2

Yamaguchi sat at his desk the first day after winter break, frantically writing down the answers to the last of his homework assigned to first years to keep busy while not in school. He was disturbed out of his focus when he heard the rest of his classmates say "Welcome to Karasuno!" in unison. 

His head shot up and caught sight of a blond boy with glasses taking a seat across the classroom. His heart twinged, but he couldn't figure out why. He turned his head back to the homework. 

Yamaguchi caught himself glancing up at the new student more than once during the class period. He felt his cheeks redden and forced himself to look back down at his work. He was . . . cute. Yama cringed at his brain labeling another boy cute, but he couldn’t help it. He suddenly felt self conscious, scared another student could tell what he’s thinking about. He glanced around swiftly to check and, obviously, no one was paying him any attention. He still couldn’t shake the feeling in his stomach. 

At the end of class he watched the blond stand, and was astonished by his height. Yamaguchi was considered taller than average but this guy was giant. He sat stunned for a moment and when he stood to leave, the tall blond was gone. 

Yamaguchi finished his homework just in time to turn it in during his next class. Relieved, he focused his thoughts to the rest of the day, trying to push out the boy he saw this morning. He thought about going to volleyball after school and seeing his friends. He'd practiced a little with Hinata and Kageyama (who practiced with each other every day) over winter break, but he hasn't seen the rest of the teammates since school ended. He missed them. The team was a major pillar of support for Yama and he hasn’t been his whole self without interacting and joking and working with them every day. When practice came he practically ran to the gym while he watched Hinata and Kageyama sprint to beat eachother. 

The familiarity of the hard gym floors, echoing slams of volleyballs, Tanaka and Nishinoya’s yells, and Hinata and Kayegama’s arguments hit him all at once, and it was blissful. He went over to talk to Daichi, Suga, and Asahi, who were all standing around chatting. As he approached them, he caught the end of their conversation. 

“I’m not lying! He was taller than you, Asahi!” Suga said, frustrated. Daichi and Asahi glanced at eachother, not believing a single word Suga was saying. 

“Hey everyone!” Yamaguchi greeted his upperclassman. 

“Yamaguchi! how have you been?” Daichi greeted him with a quick hug. Asahi and Suga also patted Yamaguchi as they discussed what they did over break. Soon, the rest of the team made their way over. 

Yamaguchi was in the middle of telling a story about the evil goose he met by the lake when he felt a small frame jump onto his back. Yama stumbled but kept his balance, much to the horror of Suga. 

“Nishinoya! Get off! You could have injured our star server!” Suga panicked and ran over to pry the tiny libero off Yamaguchi. 

“Sorry, Yams. Just missed you, you lanky nerd!” Noya teased while Yamaguchi stabled himself, laughing. 

“It’s fine Suga, don’t worry, I’m fine.” Yamaguchi waved his hands in an attempt to calm the upperclassman’s nerves. As they all continued catching up, Yamaguchi’s heart twinged, and heat crept its way into his freckled and blemished cheeks. 

Their star server. 

Suga’s words stuck into Yamaguchi’s head, making his heart feel lighter. Over winter break, he let his worries about how he plays get the best of him. He convinced himself he was the worst player on the team, that he was holding them back. He felt guilty as he realized he even considered quitting once, to rid the team of his burden. But for the moment, those thoughts were gone, and a sense of pride filled his chest. Karasuno’s star server. 

-

Yamaguchi walked home in the cold, stretching his arms out, which were considerably sore from practice. He went ahead of Hinata and Kageyama, who stayed behind to practice Hinata’s spikes. Yamaguchi sighed as he wondered how the two had enough energy for all the extra practice they do together. 

The wind picked up and bit at his exposed skin, causing him to quicken his pace. He hugged his coat tightly against his body with his head down. About ten minutes away from home he could hear footsteps over his earmuffs. He glanced up to see a few other boys, roughly his age, walking in his direction. His stomach turned. 

It’s not them. He reassured himself. They don’t go to Karasuno. It’s not them. You’re safe here. 

Still, he couldn’t help but wince when he finally passed them, his adrenaline heightening. He felt his heart beat decrease as their footsteps got softer and further away. He sighed in relief. He finally made it to his house, greeted his parents, and got into his warm bed. 

Stupid. Weak. Pathetic. Yamaguchi’s confidence boost from Suga earlier that day was now gone. He felt so . . . gross. He brought his knees to his chest and let the tears fall freely. Why did he have to react that way every time he was alone? Normal teenage boys are scared of people their age. Why couldn’t he be normal? 

He tried to stop feeling this way, but he couldn’t. Every time he tried to think about how much his friends appreciate him, how much the team appreciates him, he just got pulled down with darker and darker thoughts. They swirled in his mind, making him think he didn’t deserve to be happy. He didn’t deserve his friends; they just put up with him. He got onto the team due to pity. He was their least valuable player and it wouldn’t even matter to them if he stopped coming to practice. They probably wouldn’t even notice. 

With shaky hands, he reached for his phone and called Yachi. 

“Yamaguchi! What’s up?” Yachi said cheerfully into the phone. Yama regretted calling as soon as he heard her voice. She was happy, Yamaguchi was only going to bring down her mood. 

With effort, Yamaguchi steadied his voice, “Sorry, Yachi! I was confused with a math problem so I thought I’d call, but I just figured it out.” He punctuated the last line with a forced laugh, “I’ll see you at practice tomorrow, sorry for disturbing you!”

“Okay, Yama, it’s fine! I’ll see you tomorrow!” Yachi hung up and Yamaguchi resumed crying. He hated how weak he was. How much he depended on other people. His entire life, he’s had to depend on others and he wants it to stop. 

\- 

Once again, Yamaguchi was doing his homework during first period. The night before was rough, to say the least. His healthy coping mechanisms he learned from the internet weren’t really helping him, so he resorted to things . . . less useful. 

He took turns between finishing his homework and obsessively checking his reflection in his phones camera to make sure his eyes weren’t puffy. He was so in his head he forgot about the new student, who was already gone by the time Yamaguchi got up to leave, once again. Yama sighed and rushed to put his books in his back and jogged out the door, worrying about being late to the next class. He turned the corner in the hallway and his face promptly collided with someone’s chest, causing him to fall backwards. 

“Sorry! Sorry!” Yamaguchi frantically blurted out while gathering his spilled pens, books, and papers. He stood to face the person he’d run into, and his eyes widened. Before he could say another word, the other person spoke. 

“Y-Yamaguchi?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eek it’s a little shorter than the first chapter. also i don’t plan on following like. haikyuu timeline so😳sorry if that bothers u


	3. Chapter 3

"Tsukki?" 

Tsukishima stared at his childhood friend at a loss for words. How was Yamaguchi in front of him right now? He didn't go to school there, did he?

"W-why are you here?" Yamaguchi asked, seemingly wondering the same thing as Tsukki. 

"That's a little rude to ask, Yams." Tsukki said, a dull pain still in his chest reminding him of where Yamaguchi had made contact. 

"Sorry, Tsukki." Yamaguchi turned away and looked at the clock. He'd be late for his next class if he didn't get a move on now. 

"Can we talk a little after school? i have practice until 5, but do you want to meet here afterwards?" Yamaguchi asked. 

"Sure." Tsukishima answered bluntly, still not fully processing who he just reunited with, and began to make his way to his next class. He tried to numb out his emotions as they were happening, but he wasn't quick enough. His stomach turned and his heart felt like it would beat out of his chest. He couldn't believe it. Why was Yamaguchi there? Why was the universe trying to torture him? 

Kei sat through his next classes fearful of his meeting with Yamaguchi later. He wasn't sure what he expected Yamaguchi to say but he knew it wouldn't be good. 

-

Yamaguchi practically vibrated in his seat from excitement. He had forgotten how much fun him and Tsukishima had together as children and he hoped to recreate the one good aspect of his childhood now, during his late teen years. 

"Ready for practice, Yamaguchi?" Hinata stood at the doorway to Tadashi's classroom. He hasn't realized the school day was now over, too lost in his thought process. He went with Hinata to change and go to practice. 

"You okay, Yamaguchi?" Yachi asked when they had all gathered in the gym. He seemed strange today. Tadashi was joking and running around with Hinata, almost matching the shorty's energy. He wasn't as timid today, it seemed. 

"All good, Yachi! I think I have good news, but I'll tell you about it later, I don't want to jinx it." Yamaguchi stopped talking when Daichi called the team over to start warm ups. Yachi glanced at Kiyoko, who matched her suspicion. It's been a while since Tadashi was so energized and excited, so they were both curious about the cause. 

-

"Noya, rolling thunder!" Hinata called out from across the court, demanding his upperclassman to show off his favorite move. 

"Shut up, Hinata." Kageyama groaned, only thirty minutes into practice and already at his wits end with his volleyball partner. 

"Shove it, Bakayama! Didn't you see Noya go whoosh!?" Hinata was buzzing with energy and wanted to spike, something that Tobio refused to do for him until he settled down. 

"Now I definitely won't serve to you, idiot!" Hinata had a way of working Kageyama up to the point of sheer frustration. Hinata lunged at the taller crow, wrapping his arms around his torso and trying to throw him off balance. This obviously did not work. 

"Get off me, shrimp! What do you think you're doing!" Kageyama yelled, hitting Hinata's head. 

Daichi appeared, prying the two boys from each other. Hinata started to protest, but Daichi shut him up with a hand over his mouth. 

"You two, go outside for the rest of practice. We don't need you in here if you won't take it seriously." Daichi said menacingly.

"I am taking it seriously! It's shrimpy here that gets too worked up-" Kageyama was now muffled by Daichi's hand. He grabbed the back of their practice shirts and led them outside. 

"There, now we can resume. Suga, why don't you take Kageyama's place, and Yamaguchi, you can take Hinata's." Daichi instructed, and the team fell into place. Practice went pretty smooth out after that. Yams wasn't used to hitting spikes, but had fun doing it, even though almost every single one was blocked. The team started to clean up, and Yamaguchi was telling Yachi a story about the stray cat in his neighborhood, when they heard a commotion outside. 

"Kageyama, kick his ass!" A voice rang out that was distinctly Hinata's. Daichi and Suga met eyes, both with an equally panicked look on their faces. They ran outside and the rest of the team followed suit.

There, Yamaguchi saw the scene of his childhood best friend taunting his volleyball teams setter. Tsukishima had the volleyball that Yamaguchi's two teammates had been using held high over his head, smirking at Kageyama. Kageyama, in turn, was glaring at Tsukki so intensely that Yama was surprised it didn't kill him. And finally the orange haired runt was bouncing around the two taller boys, not wanting to interrupt his setters dispute but desperately to be in on the action. 

"Woah, woah, Kageyama, what's going on?" Daichi asked his underclassman. 

"Ask beanpole here." Kageyama answered much too curtly, but the insult drew a laugh from Tsukishima. 

"Hey, you're the tall kid I was telling Asahi about!"Suga cut the tension by changing the subject. Everyone turned to look at him; even Kageyama released his death glare. 

"No way. No way is he taller." Asahi went up to Tsukki, much to close for the blond's comfort, and compared their heights. At this point he had dropped the volleyball which Hinata frantically received. 

"Wow, we could really use your height on our team. Are you in any clubs already? Have you ever played volleyball before?" Daichi interrogated the first year. 

"No and no." Tsukki was incredibly uncomfortable with all the attention. He didn't mean for this to happen, he just wanted to mess with the cocky, raven haired asshole. 

"Liar." A voice rang out from the crowd of boys. Everyone drew their attention away from Tsukishima and onto Yamaguchi. 

"He's lying, we used to play volleyball together. He was good." Yamaguchi announced to his team. 

"Yamaguchi, you know him? Why haven't you tried to get him to play before?" Daichi questioned. 

"Well, I, I mean I haven't seen him in a while, I didn't know he went here." Yamaguchi stuttered out, suddenly put on the spot by his captain in front of the whole team. The awkward air of the situation was not going away, so Daichi decided to call it a day and had everyone go change. 

After Yamaguchi got out of the locker room he was sure Tsukki wouldn't still be waiting, but there he was. Yamaguchi's heart fluttered with excitement and nervousness as he approached his old friend. 

"Hey, Yamaguchi."

"H-hey Tsukki!"

"So you stuck with volleyball, huh?" Tsukishima started the conversation while walking away. Yamaguchi didn't realize he was meant to follow until Tsukki gave him a pointed look. 

"Oh, uh, y-yeah! It's really great, the team is really great. You should definitely join the team, you know, if you want to!" Yamaguchi caught up to Tsukki. 

"Good." Tsukishima couldn't help but cut the small talk and get to the point, "Why did you stop talking to me?"

Yamaguchi's breath caught in his throat and he pulled his jacket tighter around him. He didn't expect to ever have this conversation, and especially not so suddenly. 

"I mean, I don't really remember." Lie. "We just kinda grew apart, right? It wasn't, like, I dunno, I guess I wish we didn't." Yamaguchi stumbled over his poor excuse for an explanation. 

"Okay. Why didn't you tell me you were moving?" Tsukishima questioned further, not in the mood to dance around any subject. 

"I'm sorry, Tsukki, really, I was just going through stuff at the time and I was so distracted and we weren't even really close at that point, I don't really know." Yamaguchi looked down, ashamed. His heart twinged at the fact that he never realized how much Tsukishima was affected by Yamaguchi's treatment. At their first reunion these are the questions he immediately asked? 

Yamaguchi was shaken out of his thoughts by a light punch to his arm. He looked up to meet Tsukishima's warm brown eyes. 

"Jerk." Tsukishima smirked, which in turn drew a smile from Tadashi. 

"No use dwelling," Tsukki continued, "Is your favorite food still fries?" He gestured to the small cafe they were about to pass. Butterflies attacked Yamaguchi's stomach.

"Yeah! Is yours still strawberry shortcake?" 

"Good memory."

They entered the cafe and got their favorites, Yamaguchi adding a small boba tea to his order. Now sitting across from each other in the pale pink booth, they began to catch up. 

"So you quit playing volleyball?"

"Yeah, there was really no point."

"What do you mean? You're so tall now, well, not that you weren't tall for your age before, but now you're a giant! You'd be such an awesome blocker!" Yamaguchi couldn't help but gush about his old friend. 

"Tone it down, freckles." Tsukishima blushed and glanced around the cafe, nervous about drawing attention. 

"Oh, right, sorry Tsukki!"

"I quit because there was no point in playing anymore. After my brother lied and you left, it wasn't really fun anymore." Tsukishima took a bite of his strawberry shortcake, getting a little food on his lip that he licked away, something Yamaguchi couldn't help but notice. 

"Ah, right, yeah. Maybe you'll join Karasuno's team now that we're friends again!" Tsukishima scoffed at Yamaguchi's hopefulness. 

"Doubtful, freckles. I'll probably get kicked out of here before I even get the chance to turn in a form."

"Oh yeah, why are you here?" Yamaguchi repeated the first thing he said to Tsukishima earlier that day, but quickly realized how it sounded. "N-not in a rude way! Just, why transfer to Karasuno?"

"I got expelled from my old school and Akiteru was able to get me accepted here since he's alumni. My mom still wanted me to go to a nice school and this was the only option." Tsukishima made it a point to speak without food in his mouth, something he noticed Yamaguchi didn't bother with. 

"Expelled! How come?" The freckles boy questioned through a mouthful of fries.

"It was a few reasons." Tsukishima kept his answer curt. Secretly, he was way too embarrassed to admit to Yamaguchi his delinquency got him expelled. Normally he wouldn't mind what anyone thought of him, but Yams just seemed . . . different. He wouldn't admit it, but he cared about Yamaguchi's opinion of him. He was one of the few people that he ever let get close to him. 

"Fine, keep your secrets." Yamaguchi rolled his eyes at the taller boys stoicism, then checked his watch. 

"Oh! It's kind of late, we should probably head home." 

"Yeah." 

They exited the cafe and the night had already creeped in. Absentmindedly Tsukishima lit a cigarette, then immediately became aware it was probably rude to smoke around someone without asking first. He'd never considered that before now. Still, he didn't say anything, and they sat in silence for a while, both looking at the sky and breathing in the cold night air. 

"Are you still in your old house?" Yamaguchi, seemingly unphased by Tsukki's bad habit, broke their silence. 

"Yeah, are you?" With one last drag he discarded his cigarette and began to walk in the direction of his house with Yamaguchi right behind him. 

"Yeah, when I moved schools I lived with my aunt for a few years, but now I'm back at my parents. Hey. that means we can walk home from school together like we used to! Oh, except I have volleyball, so you'll leave before me. I really think you should reconsider joining. The team is so much fun, Daichi is our captain, you met him, and Yachi and Kiyoko are our managers, Yachi is so cute and sweet. Kageyama's the setter, he's the one who got mad at you today. Oh man, is he gonna be mad at me tomorrow since we're friends? Ugh. Anyways, Asahi is the tallest on the team and he's our ace, he's sooo cool and looks scary but he's the biggest teddy bear. Hinata is really squirrelly but -"

"Yamaguchi."

"Oh, sorry Tsukki, I know I ramble too much." Yamaguchi was so embarrassed he was convinced his blushed cheeks were visible even in the dark. 

"No, it's just that we're at my house now."

"R-right!" Yamaguchi didn't realize how far they had walked already. "I'll see you tomorrow, Tsukki!" He waved at the blond as he made his way towards his house. 

"See you tomorrow, freckles." Tsukishima said without turning around. 

As soon as Yamaguchi got home he flopped on his bed, after telling his mom all about how he met Tsukki again. He was so exhausted from practice and reuniting with an old friend, he was half asleep already and could barely hear his phone buzz. 

unknown number 9:12 PM  
you should pay more attention to your belongings

me 9:13 PM  
what? who is this?

unknown number 9:17 PM  
the boogeyman. who do you think, freckles?

me 9:18 PM  
tsukki?

unknown number 9:20 PM  
great detective skills

me 9:23 PM  
jerk. how'd you get my number?

tsukki 9:27 PM  
swiped your phone for a minute. can't believe you didn't even notice

Yamaguchi yawned and rolled his eyes at his phone. He was amazed he didn't notice either. Why the hell was Tsukki so good at pickpocketing?

me 9:30 PM  
why the hell are you so good at pickpocketing?

tsukki 9:35 PM  
have to live up to my delinquent representation

Yamaguchi gave another big yawn before turning out his lights, his phone now the only source to illuminate his sleepy face. 

me 9:40 PM  
right. goodnight, mr. delinquent 

At that he set his phone on his nightstand and rolled over, burrowing down into his blankets. He forgot to get his homework done, but he didn't mind. He was content, even if it was just for one night.

**Author's Note:**

> :p  
> tips/pointers are appreciated


End file.
